Lantern holder for boats



Patented Nov. 28, 1950 LANTERN HOLDER FOR BOATS Frank E. Hull, Noblesville, Ind.

Application June 30, 1948, Serial No. 36,020

3 Claims.

The present invention relates to a mounting bracket constructed and designed to perform certain desirable functions. It has been primarily designed for the purpose of adjustably supporting a gasoline lantern, or the like, upon a small fishing boat; and it has been so illustrated and will be so described; although it will be obvious, as the description proceeds, I that the bracket is adaptable to other uses, in that it may be supported upon almost any element capable of being straddled by the clamp, and in that it is capable of supporting almost any element receivable upon the platform. Further objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, m invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only, and that change may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described, so long as the scope of the appended claims is not violated.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a rowboat, showing my mounting bracket supported thereon and carrying a lamp, in the manner in which it is primarily intended to be used;

Fig. 2 is a perspective View, upon an enlarged scale, of my mounting bracket in one position of adjustment, parts being broken away for clarity of illustration; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of one of the clamping elements associated with the platform, parts being shown in section for clarity of illustration.

Referring more particularly to the drawings. it will be seen that I have illustrated a conventional type of rowboat It upon one gunwale of which I have shown my mounting bracket, indicated generally by the reference numeral 1 i, secured to support a gasoline lantern 12 of conventional form.

lhe mounting bracket of the present invention comprises a generally C-shaped body E3, the

stem or main portion M of which joins the substantially parallel, depending legs l5 and iii. The leg l5 terminates in a boss ll provided with a tapped bore [8 therethrough, in which is mounted a clamping screw it, for rectilinear adjustment toward and away from the corresponding terminal portion of the finger it. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the screw I9 is provided, at its outer end, with a wing portion and at its opposite end, adjacent the finger I6, said screw carries a pad 2!, which may preferably be formed of rubber, synthetic rubber, or any other suitable resilient material having a high coeflicient of friction. Preferably, the extremity of the finger it will fixedly carry a pad 22 which will preferably be formed of material similar to that comprising the pad 21. It will be obvious that, of course, the pads 2| and 22 are not essential; and that, when they are used, either one or both of them may be made of materials other than those above suggested.

That corner 23 of the body I3 adjacent the finger i6 is provided with a transverse perforation adapted to receive a journal element 24. which will preferably be a screw or bolt, to provide a pivotal mounting for a holder means indicated generally b the reference numeral 25. Preferably, said holder will take the form illustrated, in which a spider, comprising a plurality of radiating legs 25, provides a supporting platform for an article, such as the lantern l2, to be carried in the holder. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, each of the legs 26 terminates in a portion 2'! turned out of the general plane of the platform to substantial perpendicularity therewith, all of said terminal portions projectingin a common direction from said plane; and I prefer to provide a continuous rail 22 joining said terminal portions 2'! and suitably secured thereto, as by welding or any other suitable fastening means. Each of said terminal portions is penetrated by a tapped bore 29 which continues through the rail 28; and a screw 39 is adjustably mounted in each of said bores for rectilinear movement toward and away from the center of the spider. Preferably, the screws 30 will move on radial lines. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the outer end of each screw 30 is provided with a manipulating wing 31, and the inner end of each screw carries a pad 32 which is preferably formed of rubber, or similar material. As is clearly illustrated in Fig. 3, I prefer to form each pad 32 with a spherical socket 33 into which opens a conical recess 34. Each screw 3!! preferably terminates in a shank 35 of reduced diameter and a spherical enlargement 36. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the material of the pad 32 is so readily distortable that the enlargement 36 can be forced past the reduced apex of the recess 34 and into the spherical socket 33, whereafter the material of the pad will spring back to its original shape, whereby the pad will be suitablyheld upon the screw 30. This arrangement provides, of course, a ball-and-socket connection between the screw and the pad, whereby the screw is rotatable, about its own axis, relative to the pad, and the pad is universally oscillable about axes perpendicular to the axis of the screw. Because of this arrangement, the surfaces of the pad engageable with the lantern E2, or other article to be supported upon the platform, will not be scuffed during tightening and loosening of the screws; and the pads will be enabled to shift relative to the screws to find solid seats against such article.

Preferably, but not necessarily, the pad 2| will be assembled with the screw [9 in the same manner in which the pads 32 are thus assembled with the screws 3|].

Projecting from the central portion of the spider, in a direction opposite to the direction of projection of the leg termini 21, is a bifurcated ear 3T'adapted to straddle the corner 23 of the body 13; and said ear is provided with perforations adapted to register with the perforation in said body corner, and to receivethe pivot element 24, whereby the holder 25 is pivotally mounted upon the body corner '23. A nut 38 will be assembled with the screw 24 to "hold the same in position.

Preferably, the corner 23 will be ,humped in the manner illustrated, wh eby the are through wh eh the holder 25 is ,cscillableabout the pivotal element Zdissomewhat elongated. In the "illustrated embodiment of the invention, that arc .of adjustment is about 110?; but itis quitedesirable that the arc shall not be ,less than 90 ,in

l n th- ;Nearthe extremity of one of the legs 26, I have provided anear "39 located generally in a plane perpendicular to the axis of thepivotal element "25, andprojecting out of the plane of the Spider in ,a .direction opposite .to the directionof projectionpf jhe'leg termini 21. A link Ill] .has one end pivotally mounted upon said car 39 through the medium of a rivet 4|..or other suitable fas- :tening means. The link Allis formed .with a lon- ,gitudinally extending slot 74-2 therethrough, .said ,slct .preferablyjbeing .closed at its opposite .ends.

A screw .43 is adjustably vInountecl in a tapped bore in the body L3 ata .pointremote from the bo e in wh ch is mounted the pivot24. I prefer to locate the screw-4,3 in the corner of the body adjacent the finger L5,. The shank 4d of the .screw 43 loosely traverses the slot 42 in the link 40 and, at a point located near the side .of the link 40 remote from the body I3, said screw 43 is provided with a radial enlargement 45. Upon said enlargement 45, I prefer .to provide a wing .46.

said enlargement, and to press the opposite face of said link frictionallyagainst the body !.3, the

holder v25 will thereby beheld, in any selected ,screweadjustable pads 32 with said lantern, the

lantern may be tilted from the position illustrated in Fig. 1 to the position -.of the holder illustrated in Fig. .2, or to any intermediate position, and

may be-retained in any selected position between those two extremes. With the bracket 1 I mounted on the boat in the manner illustrated in Fig. 1, this means that the lantern may thus be held safely out beyond the edge of the boat, and in .a position to throw its rays of light perpendicularly into the water, or at any desired angle to the surface .of the water. Thus the user, who may be fishing or gigging, can adjust his lantern It will be obvious that, when the screw .43 is adjusted to bring the enlargement 45 into .engagement with the face of the link All adjacent to any position which he considers to be optimum, and may leave it in that position, unattended, with perfect assurance that it will be safely held in place.

It will be clear, furthenthat the lantern, or other object, supported in the holder 25, may be mounted at other points on the boat, and held .in any desired position of adjustment relative thereto. For instance, with the parts in the relative positions illustrated in Fig. 2, the body 13 might be mounted upon any one of the boat seats 48 and would, in the illustrated position of adjustment, there hold the lantern in vertical position.

In order to guard against accidental oscillation of the bracket about'the axis-of the screw l9, I prefer to provide the body '13 with a pair of Wings 4? (only one of which appears in Fig.2),

.rigidlyassociated with said body and projecting oppositely from the general plane of said body.

I claim as my invention: 1. A mounting bracket of the class described comprising a generally C-shaped body clamp,

.means carried adjacent .one extremity of said body in cooperative relation to the other extremity of said body, holder .means pivotally mounted on said body adjacent a corner of said body to swing about an axis substantially perpendicular to the plane of said body, a link connected to said-holder means at a point remote fromsaid axis,,and means cooperating with said body and said link for retaining said holder meansin any selected position of adjustment about said axis, said last-named means comprising a screw threadedly engaging said body and lclampingly engageable with said link at selected points in the length of saidlink.

2. A mounting bracket of the class described comprising a generally C-shaped body, clamp means carried adjacent one extremity vof said body in cooperative relation to the other extremity of said body, holder means pivotally mounted on said body adjacent a corner of said body to swing about an axis substantially perpendicular to the plane of said-body-a link connected to said holder means at a point :remotefrom said axis and provided with a longitudinally-extending slot, and means cooperating with said body and said link for retaining said holder means in any selected position of adjustment about said axis, said last-named means comprising a screw traversing said slot, threadedly engaging said body, and cooperable with said link to press said link frictionally into contact with said body.

3. The bracket of claim 1 in which said screw has a shank portion loosely engaged in said link slot and further has a radialenlargement, located on the side of said link remote from said body and engageable with said link to clamp said link between said body and said enlargement.

FRANK E. HULL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 826,294 Waldschmidt July 1'7, 1906 935,405 Rhodes Sept. 23, .1909 946,337 Clear Jan. 11, 19.10

1,221,658 Berry Apr. 3,, .1917 1,437,303 Hatch Nov. 28, 1922 2,008,233 Walthers July-16, 1935 

